Groovy Girl!

Eliza turned 7 years old and started first grade. She is our little fashion diva and loves to dress up and accessorize. She is enjoying school and is always very sad when Saturday rolls around. (Boy! Will that change!) We sure love her!!

Pirate Birthday!

Our little Benjamin turned 4 yesterday. We celebrated the day "pirate style." We decorated a pirate cake, colored parrots and ship pictures, and even discovered our very own treasure map! It was lots of fun looking for the "buried loot" in the backyard!

Ben had a "super, awesome" day. He is so excited to be four because that means he can run even faster!

He is a definitely our secret treasure. He is very sweet and happy. He loves to learn and discover new things. He plays well with others and is quick to laugh!

Happy Birthday big guy!!

Summer Lovin'

"Summer lovin' happens so fast..."

The Stowell family has had such a fun, exciting, and busy summer. We have visited six different states and lived in three of those. Leaving Texas was very tearful and our hearts were heavy to leave such wonderful friends. We stopped at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado on our road trip back to Utah. Dave's kind parent's took us in to their home in Salt Lake for six weeks and let us climatize back to the West. We enjoyed time with cousins and especially Aunt Maren's beautiful wedding.

Dave and I enjoyed our first trip away together in 7 years! We went to Boston for a math conference, but oh! we had so much fun seeing the sites and being together. We loved walking the Freedom Trail, reliving history, and eating some great food.

We moved back to Rexburg, Idaho the second week of July. The kids love their own rooms and the big backyard. I absolutely love the garden vegetables and watching Ben and Eliza run around with the neighborhood kids!

We also spent a "cousins week" in Montana. My sister with her three kids and me with mine drove up to Cascade to visit Grammie and Poppa on Sugarloaf Mountain. We enjoyed time at the little community pool, hikes up Grammie's mountain, picking wildflowers, spotting snakes and Poppy (the turtle) in the pond, and lots of sweet treats and yummy dinners! (We even showed the kids "Grease" for the first time-- a movie classic for my sister and I.)

Our family also tried camping for the first time this summer. We love it, especially Dad's cooking, the s'mores, and the stars.

We plan to finish off the summer with a couple of birthdays, hopefully one more camping trip, and most important time together!

Home for the Holidays

We spent the holidays with our little family at home in Texas. It is always special to be together. We all love this time of year. Eliza loves the decorations and the anticipation of Santa Claus. Ben and David love the food... cookies, Chex Mix, soda, trifle, ham, orange rolls, cheesy potatoes, etc. We all enjoy sitting by the fire watching Christmas movies. I love the Christmas cards in the mail. And Josh just likes that we are all home and paying attention to him.

It truly is "the most wonderful time of the year!"

Small miracles

Christmas itself is a beautiful miracle. The meaning, the transformation of the individual spirit, and the wide-eyed wonder of little ones. This year we got an added bonus... Snow. Dallas experienced it's first official white Christmas in over 80 years. It started to snow Christmas Eve and lasted all the way through Christmas day. Now that is a miracle... at least a small one that we got to enjoy.

First Haircut

Why is it so hard for a mother to cut those first locks?

Now that I am cutting three heads of boys hair I told Dave he owes me $25.00. Five for each head and a ten dollar tip. I am expecting my money any day!

Joshua's birthday

Cake! Ice cream! and Presents!

Josh had a fun 1st birthday. He was lucky enough to have Grammie here to help celebrate. We sure enjoy our little Josh. He loves to laugh... and eat!